Intra-Arterial Chemotherapy for Retinoblastoma: A Collaborative Effort

Approximately 300 children in the United States are diagnosed yearly with retinoblastoma. For a generation, it has had the highest cure rate among pediatric solid tumors, allowing reduction in side effects of management to become important determinants of therapy. Priorities of treatment are saving life, eyes, and vision. Standard treatment involves enucleation, multiagent systemic chemotherapy, and radiation and intra-arterial chemotherapy (IAC). IAC is a treatment option to deliver chemotherapy locally to the eye while minimizing systemic exposure. Research in the treatment of retinoblastoma has led to new treatment protocols for children. The purpose of this article is to define retinoblastoma, introduce the goals and priorities of retinoblastoma treatment, and describe the standard of care treatment options with a focus on IAC, which is administered in interventional radiology. It also highlights important nursing issues including the administration of chemotherapy in a clinical area where it is not traditionally administered and the challenges faced in caring for children and families with retinoblastoma.